Red Wings' center Darren Helm on schedule to return by Game 2 of playoff series with Nashville

AP photoTodd Bertuzzi prepares to shoot Saturday in the first period of the Red Wings' 3-2 shootout loss to the Chicago Blackhawks

DETROIT – Darren Helm is still on schedule in his recovery from a knee injury and coach
Mike Babcock expects the speedy forward to be back in the lineup by Game 2 of the Detroit Red
Wings' first-round playoff series with the Nashville Predators next week.

"I think he'll play in
Game 2 for sure," Babcock said Saturday after a 3-2 shootout loss to Chicago in
the regular-season finale, which clinched the fifth seed in the Western Conference for Detroit and
set up the series with Nashville.

"As soon he got on the
ice two or three days ago – I think it's his third day now – right away it
increases the opportunity to come back just because of the fact that he gets
excited about it and it doesn't hurt as much as you thought it might and you
get the brace on and it's not as bad as you though the brace was going to be.

"They're all positives
for us."

Helm centers the third
line, which includes Justin Abdelkader and Drew Miller and has been effective
in wearing down opponents while putting up points.

Helm is the Red Wings'
11th-leading scorer with nine goals and 17 assists in 69 games,
Miller is right behind him with a career-high 14 goals among 25 points and
Abdelkader has scored eight times while recording 22 points.

Babcock also expects
forward Danny Cleary to be available against Nashville.

Cleary has been battling
knee pain since early February, when missed five games after having his left knee
drained and injected with cortisone. He missed the last two games of the
regular season.